A Drippy Nose
by MaraLSky
Summary: Spring has come at last--and with it Gareth Bryne's hay fever.


Author Note: I have to say I had a LOT of fun writing this story. Perhaps a bit too much fun. :) Just to offer an explaination for the idea, I give you a reference from the latest book:

_From Page 370 of The Gathering Storm: "These are times to test men," Bryne said, pouring himself a cup. He took a sip and grimaced. "What?" Gawyn asked, glancing down at his cup. "It's nothing. I despise this stuff." "Then why drink it?" Gawyn asked. "It's supposed to imrpove my health," Bryne grumbled._

* * *

"_ACHOO!_"

Siuan Sanche stifled the yelp just in time, yet it didn't stop her from bolting upright in her bedding. _What the—? _The thought was interrupted by another explosion from the other side of the tent.

Or rather, a sneeze that sounded as if someone had sent a fireball crashing into the tent.

She took a moment to rub the sleep out of her eyes before turning a baleful eye on the offending party. He stood near his own bedding, a handkerchief in one hand and a clean shirt in the other. His upper body, much to Siuan's annoyance, was quite bare. Bloody man. He woke her up with his infernal hay fever while parading about shirtless, quite oblivious to the fact this sent her pulse pounding and made it nearly impossible for her to think clearly. The man needed to have his ears soundly boxed. The problem was if she got that close to him, she might just as soundly kiss him.

Though the drippy, red nose he currently sported made the latter thought sound slightly less appealing than usual. Honestly. Gareth Bryne was surrounded by Aes Sedai—he even had one living in his very own tent!—and he still refused to seek Healing. After the third time he'd woke her up with his sneezing and coughing, she had been tempted to sneak over to him in the middle of the night and just give it to him without his permission, but she was unsure of where that might lead. It was unlikely he would sleep through it. He might take offense and throw her out. Or worse, tell the Hall—Healing was only to be given with a person's permission. Then again, he might find himself grateful for a suddenly clear head. She might be able to find a way for him to properly express that gratitude—

Siuan felt her cheeks heat, aghast at where her own mind had taken her. _Where did that come from?_ No, sneaking over to Gareth Bryne's bedding in the middle of the night was _definitely_ an ill-fated plan. Bad enough she was sharing a tent with the man. She still wasn't sure how that had happened. First, it had been one night that it had been too late and too cold to go back to her own bed in her own tent. Then she had been too tired. And then… Before she knew it, she had moved all her belongings into Gareth bloody Bryne's bloody tent. The soldiers talked. Light, even the other sisters talked! But no, she just couldn't stay away from the man even long enough to—

Her thoughts were interrupted once again as he leaned over the wash basin and hacked up a lump of who knows what from his chest. He sounded like a cat with a hairball. She sniffed. In love with the man she might be, but that was revolting. "Gareth Bryne, I will offer this one last time—"

Gareth turned red-rimmed eyes on her, giving his nose one last wipe with the handkerchief as he popped something small and green into his mouth. A handkerchief _she_ would end up washing, no doubt. Or maybe not. He had taken to hiding much of his laundry—giving it to the washwomen, she suspected. She could count on one hand the number of his smallclothes that she had found herself washing since he had offered to release her from her oath. "No, Siuan. I told you, this happens every spring. It will end soon. I never accepted Healing for it before, and I won't now."

She fixed him with a dark glare. Elaida had no doubt offered…Healing. Or perhaps Morgase had offered it for her. Her issues with the idea of Elaida offering such to him were self-explanatory. As for Morgase...

It might be just as well the woman was dead. Her mouth tightened unpleasantly. Spurning a man such as a Gareth Bryne for one of the Forsaken! Compulsion was simply no excuse for that. "Do not mention that woman in my presence," Siuan told him haughtily, unsure of which woman she meant.

He bowed his head to her solemnly, clearly unaware of the other possible meaning of her words. "I apologize, Siuan," he murmured softly. Light, saying her name like that should earn him a flogging at the very least! She was glad she was still sitting. "I won't do so again, unless you bring it up." He barely got the words out before nearly doubling over coughing.

_Fish guts_. This was ridiculous. She tossed her blankets off her legs and pulled herself up to stand. Taking three quick strides across the tent, she seized his head in her hands and channeled the weaves for Healing. This had never been her forte, but it was one thing she was still as strong with as she had been before her stilling. Surely enough to Heal the stubborn man's head cold. He struggled against her, but she held onto him by his hair. "Siuan, I told you--!"

She finished the weaves, but didn't let go of his head. "Well?"

He glared down at her and shook his head. And promptly sneezed in her face.

She blinked at him, and then frowned. Out of the corners of her eyes, she could see white and yellow flecks upon her cheeks. Slowly, she removed her hands from his head and took first her right hand to wipe the offending matter off one side of her face, and then the left. And then smeared it onto his bare shoulders and chest.

He glanced down at himself, then at her and her hands, still resting on his breastbone. "Siuan, that was most un-Aes Sedai-like. Not to mention unladylike." Despite his stern tone, the corners of his mouth were twitching.

"If you had been wearing your _shirt_ you would have only had to change that." With a sudden movement, she grabbed said shirt out of his hand and proceeded to wipe his nose with it. She dabbed it gently until she was satisfied it was properly clean. "Well, at least you nose no longer looks like a red trout. My Healing did something for you. Hay fever can be difficult to Heal, and Healing has never been my strong point." She shook the shirt out and proceeded to try to put it on him. It almost seemed a shame to cover him up, but seeing him as him in his present state was far too much of a temptation.

"I'm guessing you didn't channel that clean," he commented drily as she stuffed his arms through it.

She started buttoning the shirt. She did it slowly—her fingers were trembling from his proximity. "No. If you're going to walk about with a runny nose instead of seeing a Healer, you're going to have to walk about with the drippings from your nose all over you."

He grabbed her hands as she began on the third button. He fixed her with a firm stare. "Clean it up, Siuan. _All _of it."

"_You_ sneezed on me."

He arched a skeptical eyebrow, bending nearer so their face only inches apart. He lowered his voice, as if telling her a secret. "And I seem to remember someone telling me that Aes Sedai aren't supposed to Heal people without permission."

"It didn't work anyway," she said dismissively, her voice catching as she felt his breath on her face. She wrinkled her nose, though the gesture was feigned. "And your breath might be suffering from your hay fever." Where did he find that mint to chew in the morning? Everything was still brown and dry. Maybe he _did_ chew the mint to disguise bad breath—

She suddenly found herself tasting the cool scent of mint as his lips met hers. She felt his hands release hers as his arms placed themselves around her shoulders and waist. _Blood and ashes… _She curled her fingers around his biceps as she melted into him, returning the kiss, all thoughts of hay fever and drippy noses fading into distant corner of her mind. A ridiculous way to share their first kiss, but…

He pulled back suddenly, releasing her as the most powerful sneeze yet seized him.

She folded her arms. This was most definitely the last straw. She marched over to her trunk and began digging through the odds and ends inside. Egwene had refused the drink the stuff, but Gareth bloody Bryne was going to do so if she had to force it down his throat. It hadn't worked for Egwene, but she suspected the girl's headaches had been caused by that…that…_woman_, Halima. Siuan suppressed a shudder. A Forsaken. Well, it was unlikely that his hay fever was caused by any of the Dark One's minions.

Though she couldn't imagine something eviler than their kiss being rudely interrupted by a mere sneeze.

No matter. She grabbed up the pitcher and filled a cup with water as Gareth began another long series of sneezes and coughs. Channeling a lick of Fire, she heated the water and began preparing the tea. It smelled awful, and according to Egwene, tasted far worse. No more than he deserved for pulling away from her like that, even if he couldn't help it.

She shoved the hot tea under his nose. "Drink it," she commanded.

He eyed her suspiciously, as if wondering if she was somehow seeking revenge on him for kissing her. She sniffed and raised the cup to his lips. "I said drink it, Gareth Bryne."

He pushed it away, sniffling. "What is that stuff? It smells terrible."

"Tea. To improve your health," she replied flatly, pushing it in his face again. "Drink!" Men were such babies when faced with something unpleasant tasting.

Their eyes met over the rim of the cup. She matched his stare, unblinking, and for once, the man took her direction. He took the cup and took a long drink of the tea, making a terrible face as he did so. Siuan smiled as he sat the empty tin cup down, pleased.

He sat down on the camp stool. "It's not helping."

She rolled her eyes. Men! "A bit more time, Gareth. It's herbs, not Healing. Normally, I don't think much of herbs…"

"I despise that stuff."

She placed her hands on her hips. "…But in this case, I'll make an exception." Siuan embraced _saidar_ again and wove Air and Water to clean off his nose again. She pressed her lips together, still feeling the warmth of his kiss upon them. "Lelaine and Romanda would both bust a rib laughing if they knew I was spending my morning wiping your drippy nose, Gareth Bryne." She reached to smooth his hair, rumpled as it was from her own rough attempt at Healing. "Siuan Sanche, former Amyrlin Seat, who once made kings and queens kneel before her, now nursing her ruffian general back to health from a little head cold." It was impossible to keep the note of affection out of her voice.

"_Ruffian_ general?"

She smiled at the indignant tone. "That's what Lelaine called you: 'That ruffian general of yours'." Siuan smoothed the collar of his shirt, noting the large gooey smear on the front, lower part of the shirt from where she had used the shirt as a handkerchief for him. Now that he had broken through the invisible barrier between them, she couldn't make herself stop _touching_ the man. Light! "I told her under no uncertain terms that you were most definitely _not_ a ruffian. But she might not believe me if you walk around wearing that dirty shirt."

He grinned up at her. And stared.

But not at her face. "Gareth Bryne!" she snapped, grabbing his chin and forcing him to look her in the eyes. It was all very well for him to look at her like that when she wasn't paying attention, but to do so in such an obvious way…! "I should box your ears!"

He started laughing and gestured to the front of her dress. "Lelaine might say you're a ruffian too. You forgot to change again last night. And now it's all over your dress, too."

What...? She glanced down at the bosom of her linen dress and saw a gooey, wet smear to match the one on his shirt. She felt her cheeks heat, mortified. His nose drippings, no doubt transferred from his shirt to her dress when he had embraced her. _Fish guts._ "I'll change it later," she muttered. Screen or no screen, she couldn't help but imagine his eyes on her when she changed while he was in the tent and awake. Thank the Light for the Power allowing her to clean and press her dresses when she couldn't find an opportunity to do so without him and his eyes in the tent.

"The bright blue one," he said suddenly. Siuan blinked at him, bewildered. "With the yellow trim and the flowers embroidered on the neckline. I like that one: it brings out your eyes." He studied her face. "I haven't seen you wear that one in a long time."

Siuan gaped at him. The man remembered a particular _dress_? "That's because it's silk, Gareth. We just finished with winter, if you haven't noticed. Besides it's—" She cut herself off, flushing as she remembered Leane's twinkling dark eyes as she speculated on why Siuan just _might_ be wearing such a dress. Bloody Domani women. It had stayed hidden at the very bottom of her trunk since that day—come to think of it, that was the _only_ time she had worn that dress. Burn him for remembering it!

"It's what?" He smiled up at her, a hopeful look in his eyes

She swallowed, feeling her pulse speed up a little. "I'll see if I can find it," she mumbled under her breath and regretted the words as soon as they left her mouth. Why did she have to decide not to lie to _him_ of all people? Well, she didn't say she would wear it. Just find it. She frowned down at him, trying to figure out how to deal with the insolent man, when a thought occurred to her. "You're not sneezing anymore."

He shook his head. "My head still feels like it's stuffed with a pillow."

"Yes, but you're not sneezing. That's progress," she pointed out. She moved over to his trunk and pulled out a clean shirt. "Maybe you just need to drink that tea all the time and it will improve it."

Gareth frowned at her as she began to help him out of the dirty shirt, all thoughts of the dress apparently gone. "You mean I have to drink it _again_?"

"I'll make you a pitcher of it. I'll need to get more of the herbs from Chesa," Siuan told him, tossing the gooey shirt into the laundry basket. She stuffed his right arm into the clean shirt. "It'll make you feel better, Gareth."

"It tastes horrible," he complained as she slipped the other sleeve over his other arm. "Siuan, I am quite capable of dressing myself."

Siuan ignored his objection and started to button up his shirt. She would never admit it to anyone, but she was enjoying mothering him. Lelaine would bust _all_ her ribs, burn her. "I don't need you sneezing all over me or waking me up. You _will_ drink it."

He grimaced at her, but slowly his face became thoughtful. "What?" she asked, finishing the last button and straightening his collar. He looked quite handsome, she thought.

"I'll drink the tea…" He grinned at her. "But you _will_ find that dress?"

_Insufferable man._ She nodded slowly.

He stood from the camp stool, grabbed his coat up and then tipped her chin up with one finger. "And wear it…for a week."

She ground her teeth. It appeared she was discovering a whole new side of Gareth Bryne. One she was finding strangely exciting. "Fine." She poked him the chest. "But you're to drink an entire pitcher each day. For a week," she added when he started to protest. If she had to endure the eyes of soldiers and the raised eyebrows of her fellow Aes Sedai, he could endure the unpleasant taste of the tea. Besides, he would have the benefit of not having his nose dripping all over everything.

"Very well. I agree to your terms." He leaned over and kissed her, softly at first, but by the time he broke away her pulse was pounding in her ear. A proper ending to a kiss. "I need to go take some reports to Sheriam. I look forward to tomorrow." And he left the tent, looking quite pleased with himself as he did so, leaving her standing there with her legs feeling like two limp eels. Wobbling slightly, she went to her trunk and began tossing dresses onto her bedding.

Burn the man and his drippy nose.


End file.
